Daniel Ricciardo's horror start in Red Bull's 2014 dud car
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Aussie Daniel Ricciardo's time at Red Bull has got off to the worst possible start, with his car breaking down before he managed to complete a full timed lap in testing at Spain's Jerez circuit.

Fox Sports

31 Jan 2014

Sport/Motor SportSport/Motor Sport/F1

Daniel Ricciardo checks out the new car after its unauspicious debut.Source: Getty Images

REIGNING Formula 1 champion Sebastian Vettel has flown home with a day to go in pre-season practice after his Red Bull team admitted they are going "back to the drawing board" on their failed car.

Vettel, aiming for his fifth straight world championship, only managed eight laps of a normal 200 in the first two days of pre-season testing in southern Spain, while his new teammate Australian Daniel Ricciardo didn't fare any better.

Ricciardo, 24, broke down before he had completed a single lap in a mid-morning session and when he hit the track again late in the afternoon he only managed two laps before mechanical problems caused Red Bull to call it a day.

Car designer Adrian Newey, considered a wizard and the best designer in Formula 1, has also returned home to redesign the RB10 car ahead of the first grand prix of the season in Melbourne in March.

Red Bull pricipal Christian Horner also returned home early.

"Adrian has gone back to the drawing board, there is only so much they can do here at the track," Ricciardo said today.

"Even if we go to Melbourne still a bit whatever, it's a long season and these guys know how to win. That's important. I'm sure sooner rather than later we're going to get it all together."

While the Red Bull team has privately made no secret of their frustration Ricciardo said the team had made slow starts in the past only to end up dominant.

Mercedes driver Lewis Hamilton agreed with that view and said he believed his rivals would return ahead of Melbourne with a better car.

"Anything can happen to any team because there are so many factors that come into play, and everyone's trying their best to get things ready," Hamilton said. "I'm sure they'll get their issues sorted and be back out on track."

It was not clear whether Ricciardo, who barely spent more than two minutes in the car, will take to the track later today although most believe that Red Bull's Spanish testing is over for now.

Newey has designed title-winning cars for Williams and McLaren as well as all of Red Bull's championship-winning machines, but has questioned new guidelines for F1 which have forced all teams to significantly modify their cars in what has been described as the biggest technical transformation for a generation.

Under the changes, 2.4 litre V8 engines have been replaced by 1.6lt turbocharged V6s with extensive hybrid energy-recovery systems. Drivers will also have to complete races on 100kg of fuel, down from around 150kg, and chassis safety rule changes have led to the controversial "ugly" new nose designs and other aerodynamic design changes.

All the teams have suffered some issues on track - including highly fancied Ferrari, whose new F14T broke down in its very first lap - but none as much as Red Bull.

Cars driven by Mercedes and Ferrari-designed power units have not had as many issues as those cars using Renault motors.

JRicciardo examines his car after it broke down and started streaming smoke.Source: Getty Images

Ricciardo appeared all set to drive the new Red Bull for the first time, gearing up with engines running mid-morning. but after five minutes of revs the run was again delayed.

When he did exit the pit lane half an hour later, the car completed three quarters of a lap on the Jerez track before it broke down on a turn. Extinguishers were brought out with smoke coming from its engine, although they were not needed. It's been an unhappy few days for Red Bull, with technical issues besieging the team to effectively hand rivals a huge advantage in final pre-season runs.

The Red Bull team issued a statement at the end of the day, vowing to sort the issues that have plagued the RB10 so far.

"We worked hard yesterday to make the changes it was felt were necessary to overcome the problems we identified and we were hopeful of a more successful day today," Red Bull's race engineering co-ordinator Andy Damerum said.

"Unfortunately, the measures we took only partially solved the issue and, as with yesterday, it's more sensible to stop and dig deeper into finding a solution.

"It's obviously not where we want to be and naturally the whole team is frustrated by these issues. However, we're pretty good at bouncing back from this type of thing.

"This is where the whole team pulls together and I'm sure we will get these problems fixed."

Red Bull confirmed they called an early halt to Day 2 of testing and Day 3 morning session after partner, the engine-maker Renault, reported an energy store issue on the car.

"Obviously we've not had a lot of running and have a few problems to sort out, but with such big rule changes it is usual to have some teething problems," Vettel said. "That's what tests are for, to sort those issues out. The next two days will be important to get some track time to prepare for the tests in Bahrain."

Formula 1 this year introduces the biggest set of rule changes to competition in a generation, with 2.4lt V8 engines replaced by 1.6lt V6 turbos and extensive hybrid energy-recovery systems. Drivers will also have to complete races on 100kg of fuel down from 150kg, and chassis safety rule changes have led to the controversial "ugly" new nose designs.

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